American History Exam #3

Brand Names

- Another marketing innovation. - In the dry good store you would buy food in bulk. In the 1920s brand names were developed to create an experience for the shopper. - Brand names were linked to a logo and higher quality. There is a need to visually distinguish their product from the others. - Marketing occurred in glossy magazines.

Black Thursday (on margin)

- 1929: stock market crash that many people associate with the Great Depression. - The 1920s had seen an increase in stock market investment. Average people did not have a lot of knowledge regarding investments, but because everyone was buying stocks, prices went up; they thought they were brilliant at it. Seasoned investors did not put everything they had into the market while unseasoned investors did. They knew that a "bull market" is always followed by a "bear market." - This created inflated stock prices - an artificial increase. This had to come to an end at some point - October 24, 1929. - The stock market dropped at around 9am, then people raced to sell their stocks. This panic was the largest that had occurred in the country - it dropped by $35 billion by the end of October. This money disappeared from the economy, money that people had been counting on as savings. - 5500 banks failed as they had invested in the stock market. This was the money people had deposited into banks as savings.

Reagan Revolution

- 1984 campaign commercial was Morning in America. - Talked about all of the positive changes that occurred under the Reagan administration. - Looked to the future and emphasized forgetting the negativity of the past. - Didn't show the typical conservatism against desegregation - it was conservative nationalism. - Appealed to working class pride that had been damaged in the War on Poverty era. People believed that the tax money of hard-working Americans was being squandered by people abusing the system. - His candidacy was driven by the backlash against Great Society programs. This often targeted minorities as they were automatically associated with ghettos and the "intercity", and were believed to be abusing the systems in particular. - Reagan cut 300,000 public works jobs, suspended the food stamp program and cut funding to families with disabled children by 10% in his first year. - There was a feeling that American foreign policy had failed - a need to strengthen internationally.

Model T

- A mass-produced car that was affordable for the middle class. - Half of all automobiles sold in the 1920s. - Everything about its production was aimed to eliminate costs. E.g. all of them were painted black, no additional features.

Fordism

- A term used by economists to describe mass production. Maximizing production of consumer goods by simplifying tasks (e.g. assembly line). - Also used to talk about his labor policies: o He announced that he was going to pay $5 a day for labor - more than double what any other laborer made. This attracted people all over the world and African Americans from the South. African Americans were given the same wages, however Ford did not believe in racial equality. They were often put into the most dangerous and uncomfortable environments. o The philosophy was that they would be paid enough to buy their own car. This philosophy was about mass consumption - you can't mass-produce a product that only a select few can afford. - This was different than Andrew Carnegie, whose cost accounting was all about driving costs (including labor) down. - In exchange, he demanded total loyalty - close monitoring of the workers to make sure he was getting his money's worth. For example, workers could not smile; there was a certain amount of time allotted to use the bathroom, etc.

Malcolm X

- Appealed to urban African Americans in the North who already had the vote and people who disagreed with non-violent methods of the Civil Rights Movement. - He argued that African Americans had been oppressed by violence, and that they should fight back with violence. They would get their rights by the "ballot or the bullet." - Also argued that violence was the only language that white people understood. - This frightened white Americans. - Assassinated in 1965 by members of the nation of Islam. - His death marked the beginning of a period of the Civil Rights movement that was more contentious and frustrated.

Ho Chi Minh

- Approached the United States with the idea of liberating Vietnam. o 1919 at Versailles - but Wilson had no time for this relatively unknown man. o End of WWII - ignored again. - It was during the French resistance that he realized that he had to become a military leader as well as a political leader. - Saw communism as a road to independence as well as an equalizer. - Died before seeing the end of the American war - become almost god-like to the Vietnamese people. - Executed 10,000 people in North Vietnam.

Truman Doctrine (Greek Civil War)

- Based on the Greek Civil War of 1944. - The Nazis occupied Greece in 1941 and a resistance developed. - Between 1942 and 1944, there were two competitive bands of resistance fighters. One is the conservative supporter of the monarchy and the other is a communist movement. - In the 1944 the Communists prove victorious and control much of Greece. - The US and UK have a chance to occupy Greece after the war. They do not want the Communists. They resurrect the monarchy and arm it and create a civil war. - 1947: The US releases its support for the monarchy. Truman argues to save the people of Greece from the outside influence of Communism. But Communism was not an outside force; these were Greeks who wanted to overthrow their government. - The monarchy wins. - He stretched that this Civil War was a threat to the American people. This was the beginning of a long policy called containment. Communism was almost like a disease. Its ideas were intoxicating to the poor and uneducated. Those people would unwittingly fall under the influence of Joseph Stalin who would take over the world. This was the Domino Theory. - Every portion of the world that began to take on the views of Communism became a battleground for the Americans. - Truman was acting on the Long Telegram, showing force through involvement in Greece. - In fact, the Soviets perceived this as acts of aggression. The US was the country with the inability to agree to disagree. They would go on to serve a number of proxy wars with the US that would include Vietnam. - At the time, the American government had a monopoly on nuclear arms, therefore they felt they could exercise this power over the Soviets.

Jim Crow (Connor, Thurmond)

- Became the nickname for the segregation in the South. - System of racial segregation and a foundation for racial oppression that was nearly complete, having denied African Americans nearly every right. - In the Deep South, African Americans were denied the right to vote, all public places were segregated as well as schools and transportation systems. - The system was written in federal and state laws in the 1890s. - A historian in the 1950s was the first to say that the South was not always segregated. White children were breast fed by Black nannies for example. This was forgotten by the 1950s as many assumed that segregation had always been present. - "Separate but equal" - this phrase in the law allowed segregation. The people could be kept separate as long as provisions were given that were "equal" for both races. - Beyond local and state law, the system of Jim Crow was implemented by violence. Unwritten laws were more stringent, strict and regularly enforced. - Terrorist groups such as the KKK fought to uphold the Jim Crow system and white supremacy. - The most dramatic form of this violence without trial was lynching, where a black person who was assumed to have committed a crime was killed. o In the 1800s there was a degree of anonymity as the KKK wore hood and performed lynches during the night. o By the 1900s, lynching was somewhat accepted by the local police. People did not wear the hoods and lynching occurred during broad daylight. - There was also monopoly over the political system. African Americans and their allies were denied the right to vote systematically. For example voting laws included a fee and a literacy test. This allowed people like Eugene Connor - a public racist segregationist - to be elected police chief. He used hoses, police dogs and other forms of brutality against civil rights activists. This power stretched to Wallace, the governor of Alabama, who was also a segregationist.

Moving Assembly Line

- Before the assembly line, skilled workers would work in a shop and assembly a car piece by piece. The first motorized cars were then a luxury item. - The assembly line allows mass production. - Popularized by Ford. - Innovations included bringing the car to the parts and motorizing production. The purpose was to eliminate unnecessary labor. - The assembly line meant that management set the pace of work, rather than the workers. Skilled workers were no longer needed so they had no deciding power.

Chain Retail Store

- Brands are now associated with retail stores. - At the end of the 19th century, there were lots of department stores, however they were only located in one city. In addition, storeowners would get the products and weight them out for the customers. - One example was A&P in Maine. - Shopping became an independent experience - products were weighed and stored separately into products and the shopper would choose their own products.

Thich Quang Duc

- Buddhist monk who helped bring down the presidency of Diem and de-stabilized South Vietnam. - Diem did not recognize Buddhism - he would sow the seeds of his own destruction. - Buddhist monks were often arrested, the lands of their monasteries were often seized and they became the loudest critics of his rule. - They agreed to withstand Diem's punishments and not back down. They followed Ghandi's teachings of nonviolent protests through silent marches, hunger strikes and setting themselves on fire. - When Diem ordered that the Buddhist flag would not be allowed to fly, Diem's troops shot into a crowd of monks, nine of who died. Duc was present. - The international community was sympathetic to their plight, especially when Duc eventually set himself on fire in a public area near the palace and a photo was taken. People knew that this had come about through the actions of a president supported and handpicked by America. - Diem was eventually overthrown through a coup and assassinated, but this only led to more instability in South Vietnam. - An example of peaceful protest - nail in the coffin of Diem's presidency.

VISTA

- By 1967, Johnson was struggling to finance these problems. - Volunteers in service to America - a domestic Peace Corps that would have college students as volunteers going into poor areas to solve problems - improving education and vocational training. - No religious activity was allowed, no union organizers and no engagement in partisan politics. - Attempts included refurbishing run-down schools. - Goal was to raise awareness about education as a path out of poverty. - Would teach literacy, hygiene, etc. - Would have celebrations of distant cultures - costumes, ways of life, music, etc.

Mass Production & Mass Culture - Overview

- Mass production focused on consumer goods - what people would buy for their daily lives. - Resulted in a change in American culture - mass culture. - Marketing tools - psychologists were hired to increase demand and consumerism. Americans were very frugal at the end of the 1800s.

Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee

- By the middle of 1960, SNCC was making sure that sit-ins were organized. This ensured support - enough people to participate, people to support those who might be arrested, etc. They also made sure to choose restaurants that would have the most important impact. - Students would go into the restaurant and would sit in shifts. Non-violent resistance. - After desegregation of these public places, the next logical move was to seek more power, meaning the vote. - Started voter registration drives and citizenship schools. The citizenship school was designed to teach people how to successfully register to vote. This involved reading the constitution and interpreting the law.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

- Charged with enforcing the 1933 Securities Act, which entailed getting rid of practices that made the stock market susceptible to collapse. o This included making stock market prices sound. - Brought criminal charges to those involved (i.e. insider trading). - Companies were required to report accurate numbers. - The SEC was given the power to shut the stock market down to prevent mass consumer panic akin to Black Tuesday. - Supply side program.

Dust Bowl

- Considered one of the greatest environmental disasters of the 20th century. - Resulted partly from overproduction. People were growing wheat in the West in places that were considered ill suited. There was no consequence initially because the west was experiencing an unusually wet period. - Topsoil eroded and a drought in the 1930s caused the soil to turn to dust with nothing to hold it down. - Created large dust storms that would block out the sun. People placed wet towels under their doors and windows, but dust still coated their houses. - 350 million tons of dust from the Midwest landed on an Eastern city. - By 1940, 2.5 million people left the West as a result of the dust bowl.

Kerner Commission

- Created by Johnson to investigate the problem of riots more generally. - National Advisory Commission on Civil Disobedience - why is there a breakdown in law and order. - Headed by Otto Kerner. - There were no civil rights leaders on the commission - no people of color. A lot of civil rights leaders predicted that the report would blame them but were surprised. o "Our nation is moving toward two societies - one black and one white. Separate but not equal. Police had become symbols of white oppression. They often helped to enforce unwritten segregation rules and were often guilty of brutality. o Pointed also to the school system, employment and deep problems in America. - Three questions: o What happened? o Why did it happen? o How can a similar situation be prevented? - Prevention would require programs that were equal in scale to the problems.

Office of Price Administration

- Created by Roosevelt because they had a fear of inflation after just emerging from the Great Depression. - Set prices for major commodities and dictated how much individuals could buy of important products. o Milk, gasoline, clothing, rubber, metal, sugar - people were given a stamp book so they could only buy a limited amount of resources. The rest was being sent to the war effort. o 90% of retail sold across the county was regulated by the OPA. o This contributed to clothing because you were supposed to use as little fabric as possible. Anything else was seen as unpatriotic. - Organized scrap drives - boy scouts collected scrap metal and gathered it in one place to be melted down for the war effort. Housewives were encouraged to save their lard in their kitchens for use in explosives - the entire country was mobilized. - Personal savings went up by 300% during the war.

Community Action Programs (CAP)

- Designed to get maximum feasible participation in the poor peoples themselves. o Get off the couch and get them to solve their problems. - VISTA volunteers would lead programs and ask the community what problems they were facing. - This was unwanted activity in the eyes of politicians. o Example was rent strikes in Chicago. Tenants would not pay rent until their building was fixed. o Protests on City Hall about lack of city services. - Local governments came to despite community action programs. - Some successful programs included transportation programs, an election review board - they found that there was a more than 100% voter turnout due to corruption in local politics. - Watts labor community action program: o Funded community non-profit furniture and appliance store. o Co-op grocery store and poultry farm. o Food stamp centers. - This did not magically solve poverty but did prove that givent he opportunity and a platform, poor people would turn out to try and solve the problems of their community. - Would lead to movements such as the Black Lung Movement to demand health insurance cover this disease that affected coal miners. - Lost a lot of funding by the end of 1986.

March on Washington Movement

- Developed from the double V movement: democracy at home and democracy overseas. - Initially, African Americans were not being hired into the war effort in large numbers. - Demanded the abolition of segregation and discrimination in the defense industries. They wanted African American workers to be hired in numbers that reflected the national population and also wanted equal pay. - The March on Washington never actually happened, but A. Phillip Randolph threatened to bring 100,000 African Americans to Washington if Roosevelt did not take action. Roosevelt acquiesced.

Installments

- Mass production demands mass consumption. - Economists realized that depressions in the 1800s were due to manufacturers producing too many goods to be consumed. - Installment plans were one of the ways they imagined that they could help people buy more including luxury items. - The term means making monthly payments over long periods of time. - Ford was also an innovator in this area. 75% of Ford's cars were bought on credit. This was a shift in culture as before, Americans had negative associations with debt. - Electric companies would sell electric appliances on credit - another example of new marketing.

Inchon Landing (Douglas McArthur)

- Devised a strategy that was a key moment in the Korean War. - Proposed that after the retreat to Pusan, troops should land on Inchon via the Navy, cutting off the North Koreans in the South. Cut off supplies from China down the peninsula. - Became a national hero and started to become very arrogant - criticizing Truman's policies. - He didn't stop at the 38th parallel but made it to the Yalu River, which divided Korea and China. - Had the idea that they should maybe invade China - the ultimate enemy. Truman disagreed. - October 1950: China invades and drives the US and UN to the 38th parallel. Stalemate there for two years. - First American war with integrated soldiers (racially). - Portrayed the Chinese hordes and de-humanized communists - having been brainwashed and masses of humanity that China could send out at any time. - Pointed the finger at Soviet Union, but knew they could not openly say anything without starting WWIII. - Cold War: instead of fighting head-on, the US and Soviet Union would find third world countries in which to fight. - Eisenhower restored the 38th parallel as the dividing line. - McArthur criticized Truman saying that without his cowardice, he could have invaded China, and with the help of nuclear weapons defeated China. - Fear of nuclear war led to the fighting in third-world countries.

Layoffs

- During the Great Depression, 100,000 businesses failed and unemployment rose to 25%. - Fifteen million people were out of work by 1933. - In the industrial sector, layoffs and wage cuts led to violent strikes. o When coal miners in Harlan Country, Kentucky, went on strike over a 10% wage cut in 1931, the mine owners called in the state's National Guard, which crushed the union. o A 1932 confrontation between workers and security forces at the Ford Motor Company's giant River Rouge factory outside Detroit left five workers dead and fifty with serious injuries.

Harry Bennett

- Employed by Ford as the head of the sociology department of the Ford Motor Company. Sociology at this time was focusing on worker contentment. - The biggest part of his job was to spy on the workers and attempt to find out if there was any talk of unions. - Had ties to organized crime in the Detroit area. He was notorious for being able to assemble bodyguards or personal police to intimidate workers. - Another example of Ford's demand for total obedience and loyalty.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

- Epitomized the Civil Rights Movement in the 50s. - Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man while on a bus. She was an activist and was trained for this movement. For example, she remained within the law by sitting in the colored seats, and only refused the tradition of giving up her seat once the white section was full. - This also helped strike down "separate but equal." - This was somewhat an introduction for Martin Luther King JR who became the leader of the boycott. - The boycott was hugely successful and this was a different prong than the legal side of the Civil Rights Movement. - The Black community became involved together in the fight to end segregation. - They discovered their collective power - although they were poor they could halt the transportation system. - US Supreme Court ultimately ruled that segregation on buses was unconstitutional. - The boycott was not in violation of any law.

New Deal & WWII

- Expanded the role of the federal government and revolutionized labor relations within the country. - The New Deal greatly increased the role of the federal government in the daily lives of citizens, and WWII catalyzed this trend.

Works Progress Administration

- Formed in 1935, its goal was to directly employ more people. - Had a budget of $4 million - a lot more than Hoover allotted. - The government hired artists, actors and musicians. - People were hired to interview slaves. - Workers made posters and murals. - Like the Civilian Conservation Corps, the WPA would not compete with the private sector. - Some stated it was too similar to socialism.

Slovene National Benefit Society

- Founded on April 6, 1904, the Society - initially incorporated as Slovenska Narodna Podporna Jednota and now best known by its Slovenian initials "SNPJ" - was originally comprised of nine independent benefit organizations. - The members, however, desired a more constituent-based and democratic economic benefit society. - The SNPJ founders, a group of 12 Slovenian immigrants, answered the call for a new benefit society that was published in an early Slovenian immigrant newspaper. - Organized with the express intent of offering life insurance and sick and disability benefits (which many Slovenian immigrants were denied in the workplace), the SNPJ founders established a unique centralized sick benefit and death claim system which allowed for the Society's rapid development and growth across the various regions of the country.

Greensboro Four

- Four college students entered a diner and refused to leave until they were served at the lunch counter. This was an all-white counter as black patrons were expected to get take-out at a particular window. - Five days later hundred had joined them. The sit-ins lasted for four months until the restaurant agreed to integrate. - The men suffered verbal and physical harassment and were arrested for disturbing the peace as a result of the actions of others. - Sit-ins began to spread throughout the South. - Differed from the bus boycott in that the students actively broke segregation laws. Non-violent direct action.

Underclass

- Ghettos defined by crime, drugs, teenage pregnancy and high unemployment numbers. - Demonized by the media. - Another demonstration of people's unsympathetic attitude toward those in poverty. - A hardening in the attitudes toward the poor - they were often dehumanized. If they engaged in these behaviors, they should be left to die.

Civilian Conservation Corps

- Goal was to hire young men and put them to work, as they were the group with the highest rate of unemployment. - Included hiring women as well. - Focused on creating jobs that did not compete with private businesses. - Examples included reforestation projects and creating parks - building bridges, cutting paths, etc. o This was also related to preventing another Dust Bowl. - The workers lived in barracks and would send money home to their families. - This was not a long-term solution, but helped to deal with the demand side of the Depression.

Ngo Dinh Diem

- Hand chosen to be president of South Vietnam. Worked in rice fields as a young man, but was able to get a private education because his father was a civil servant. At this time, the school was run under French conditions, and was essentially Western. He studied law and would eventually get a well-paying government job. - Refused a job with the Japanese-occupied government, but did work for the French. - Wanted independence for Vietnam but had nothing to do with Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh. These groups actually declared him an enemy and sentenced him to death upon arrival in the North. - Catholic, anti-communist - many hoped that he would be the savior of South Vietnam - Western-style democracy, prosperity. - Ruled with an iron fist, any challenges were retaliated. Became notorious for prosecuting Buddhist monks, which led to the exodus of Buddhists from South Vietnam. - Worked hand in hand with the CIA to consolidate power - arrests and assassinations. - Appointed family members to government posts and worked closely with American investment companies.

Silent Majority

- In New York City, construction workers descended on student protestors and beat them up at city hall. - Construction workers from nearby work sites expressed their discontent with student protestors, calling them privileged and stuck up. - Police stood by and let this happen. - They then went to City Hall to protest the mayor's support of protests and students. - This cemented that blue collar workers were for the war, while privileged rich college students were against it. - Nixon capitalized on this riot. He never gave verbal support, but wore a hardhat in a speech the next day. - During his campaign, he expressed a need for law and order. - He said he was against protestors as a part of the silent majority. This helped him garner working class votes and Southern votes. Nixon was trying to appeal the typical working class voter who would support the hard hat riot, whereas before the Republican vote applied to small business owners and professionals. - Appealed to people who wanted a return to normalcy.

National Recovery Administration (NRA)

- In manufacturing, the New Deal attacked declining production with the National Industrial Recovery Act - the NRA was the governing body. - Set up separate self-governing private associations in 600 industries. Each industry - ranging from large corporations to small businesses - regulated itself by agreeing on prices and production quotas. - Because large companies usually ran these associations, the NRA solidified their power at the expense of smaller enterprises and consumer interests. o This was also determined to be unconstitutional and was later struck down. - Recognized workers' rights to organize into unions.

Congress of Industrial Organizations (Lewis)

- John Lewis thought to organize the unorganized, meaning all workers without discrimination. - Tried to bring in union members. - The United Auto Workers was the largest union.

Economic Opportunity Act (Job Corps)

- Leading program in the War on Poverty. - Passed by Congress in 1964 - an attempt to address Harrington's problems. - Sarge Shriver was the head of the office - related to the Kennedys. - 800 million dollar budget to start programs to end poverty. - Office would provide unified solutions to the problems - groups would not be pitted against each other (e.g. urban vs. farms). - Most important program was Job Corps - meant to take someone unemployable and teach him or her everything they needed to know to become employable. Vocational training. - Meant to give an education and training to young people. - Assumed that poor people were lazy, stupid, etc. Ignored the fact that big sectors of the economy were hit hard by economic changes after WWII. For example, mechanization greatly affected coal miners. Automation of factory work took away jobs. People could not figure out which career to turn to. - Chemical industry and airline industry took off. - 1960s would become the start of structural problems in the economy that still exist today.

Theater Circuits

- Local theater circuits would be a string of local theatres owned by one bookkeeper. - Performers often had song and dance numbers, comedians, jugglers, gymnasts, musicians, etc. - There would be a straight man, and a funny man who would play off of him. - With the development of cinema, these groups would make their own movies. - This would replace local acts.

Ella Baker

- Longtime Civil Rights activist. - Was asked, "Should we join the NAACP and form a college student's chapter?" - Mother was a slave in her early years, and Ella was told stories of slave revolts. - Attended high school in North Carolina, and relocated to NYC after graduation. She lived in Harlem - Harlem Renaissance and communist activity. - Joined the NAACP and became secretary. But she also gave speeches and asked for donations. - Was frustrated by the NAACP because of the centralized leadership. There was a lack of democracy as the ideas of young people and women were not heard. - She eventually left the NAACP and joined Dr. King's organization. However, she faced sexism again as the majority of the ministers were men and was made secretary again. - She believed that no single leader should shape an organization. Leadership skills should be diffused with each new chapter. - Student Non-Violent Coordination Committee.

Lyndon Johnson

- Lyndon Johnson became president in 1964 after Kennedy's assassination. - Johnson was the Vice President - a lifelong democrat from Texas. He could deliver votes from the South for Kennedy. - Meant to solve the issue of poverty - Johnson experienced this as a schoolteacher. - Became president at the time of American optimism - meant to solve domestic issues instead of focusing on imperialism and grandeur. - Johnson was very accomplished in getting laws passed and working Congress and the Senate. - Announced a War on Poverty - the subset of the Great Society focused on the poor.

Democratic National Convention - 1968

- Many people protested the convention because they felt the voice of the people was not being heard. The winner was going to be Humphrey, but many of those who had voted for Kennedy might have liked to have McCarthy as their candidate. - Protestors were not allowed in the convention and a police riot ensued. - It was argued that the government had become more authoritarian in the 60s, rather than less. - There was a student protest that was shut down through police brutality. Police were not trained in how to deal with non-violent protests. - Nixon eventually won the presidency. His campaign was focused on returning to 1959 and re-doing the decade.

Great Depression

- Marked the end of the optimism of the 1920s. - Resulted in homelessness, failure of banks and business, unemployment, etc. - A worldwide phenomenon due to integration of economies. - Resulted from a number of factors: o Overproduction - there were no checks and balances regarding supply vs. demand and prices fell. This happened in agriculture and industry. o Credit - although profits in business were increased, wages were not. The middle and working classes bought a lot of things on credit, which again was not kept in check.

Culture of Poverty

- Michael Harrington was a sociologist that focused on the big problems that the US could now solve do to resources and know-how - agreed that poverty was a major issue. - Used journalistic skills to find empathetic portraits of poor people to show the American people. These stories would be published into a bestselling book. - In the new America, poverty is invisible because of suburbia. If it is seen at all, it is in passing by on the interstate. Back in the old days, poverty would be limited to certain neighborhoods. In his book, he would show the poverty middle-class Americans were not seeing. - Used inner cities and rural areas. - The rejects chapter: workers who were no longer needed in the new society - e.g. coal miners. Their skills are not transferable, although they are physically strong and able to live in a community. These workers needed to figure out how to do something else. - Related to modern vs. traditional thinkers. The coal miners needed to adapt but were not and were getting trapped in poverty and the "culture of poverty." - People do not want to leave their homes, even though there is no opportunity there. - Book became inspiration for many programs to come in the Great Society.

Viet Minh

- Military branch of Ho Chi Minh's movement formed in 1941. - Vietnam fell under Japanese occupation. o Germany defeated France. o Japan had built an army, navy and air force in a very short period of time. They extended their empire throughout the Pacific Ocean and the East. - The Viet Minh resistance resembled very much the hit and run actions of the French Resistance. - Indochina War o September 2nd 1945, Ho Chi Minh gave a speech in Hanoi, which would become the capital of North Vietnam. o Once France reclaimed the country, the Viet Minh would resist. - Indochina was split into three nations overseen by the US: Laos - a coalition government. - Vietnam was in French control from 1945 to 1954 but was in constant battle with the Viet Minh.

Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII)

- Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party showed up at the 1964 Democratic National Convention, but was not permitted because the votes of the white south were critical to the Democratic Party. Democratic Party has racist issues. - Johnson wanted to tackle the issue of racism in the Dem. Party and in the country as a whole. - Imagined as a way to end racism and regress poverty among African Americans. - Most of his political capital was spent on this particular law - it was not a popular law. - To get it passed, Johnson made many promises to senators and even bullied some. - Outlawed segregation, even though it was deemed unconstitutional ten years earlier. The federal government would work to end segregation. - Desegregation of any schools still segregated. - Title VII outlawed employment discrimination - you could not discriminate on any human rights basis including gender. - The EEOC was the governing body meant to enforce Title VII. If discrimination occurred, the EEOC could be called in to investigate. - At this time 50% of African Americans lived below the poverty line. In 1980 this had dropped to 33%. Title VII allowed African Americans to work. - Affirmative action plans: instead of ensuring a level playing field, they would ask companies to make positive steps toward equality. Study the racial characteristics of the work environment and come up with a plan to include unrepresented groups.

Dien Bien Phu

- Most influential battle in the First Indochina War. - Mountainous area in North Vietnam. - The French moved there to try and track down the Viet Minh in their headquarters. - The French constructed a base there with artillery and air support. - The Viet Minh was most of the time a small band of guerilla fighters, but had managed to amass 40,000 soldiers in the mountains. They also received artillery from China and were able to position this above Dien Bien Phu. - The French only had 10,000 troops. - The siege lasted for two months - 2,000 men died and the remaining 8000 were taken prisoner. People on the home front were exhausted, especially after WWII. Vietnam was no longer an integral part of their economy as they were now industrializing and this war was exhausting lives and money. The French surrender.

Marshall Plan (Truman)

- Named for George Marshall, a general during the war and eventually a Secretary of Peace. - If European countries wanted America to help fund rebuilding, the rebuilding would have to be approved by America. - This was not widely broadcast because the American people would not see it as favorable. They would have to pay through taxes and did not see why they had to, as they had not participated as much in the destruction of Europe. They would in fact have to help rebuild Germany. - They would help rebuild factories in other countries that would become competitive with national factories. - Western Europe is helped. Eastern Europe does not receive Marshall Aid. - When America brings their loans, they also bring their brands. - Spain does receive Marshall Aid because they had a fascist leader. However, Greece was a monarchy and did. - By helping Turkey and other countries around the SU, they appeared to be surrounding the nation including key trade routes and oil fields. - Congress approved 12 billion dollars in aid to Western Europe.

Kent State Shootings

- Nixon continued to claim that the war in Vietnam was winding down, but it was discovered that US troops had crossed international lines into Cambodia. This suggested the war was expanding, not winding down. - There was a large demonstration at Kent State. That night violence broke out between students and police officers. The next day the ROTC building was burned down. - Ohio governor declared that protestors were just as bad as Germany's brown shirts. - May 4th, the National Guard was sent to Kent State. What had started as a 300-student demonstration due to Cambodia escalated to 2000 students who were protesting the presence of the National Guard. - The National Guard was ordered to disperse the crowd, and ended up firing into it. Four students were killed, nine wounded. One student was not part of the demonstration, but was only walking to class. One student was paralyzed for life. - One Ohio businessman supported the National Guard demonstrating the divide in America.

Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)

- One of the policies of Roosevelt's first 100 days. - Focused on the institutional level - the supply side of the Depression. - Began direct governmental regulation of the farming economy for the first time. - The program paid farmers not to plant as many crops in hopes of fixing the supply surplus and raising prices. - This could increase the standard of living and promote spending. - Also focused on conserving the country - resisting over farming to prevent another Dust Bowl. - The act's benefits were not evenly distributed. Subsidies went primarily to the owners of large and medium-sized farms, who often cut production by reducing the amount of land they rented to tenants and sharecroppers. - Many sharecroppers were evicted by their landowners, which had devastating results. However, they could not vote so nothing was done. - The South was mostly democratic. - The Act was ultimately declared unconstitutional as it was viewed that the government should not set the prices of wheat and other products.

Thurgood Marshall

- Part of the NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. - Marshall became the legal council for the group in the 1930s. - University of Maryland Case o Marshall was denied admittance to the University's Law School because of his race, which was expressed to him in a letter. o He fought for someone else who had been sent a similar letter citing the "Separate but Equal" laws. Because there was only one law school in Maryland, people could not be denied on account of their race. He worked within the segregation laws. o First case and first win. - 1954 Brown v. Board of Education o Important because education was made equal, giving African Americans a better of chance. o This was the first act of national desegregation - this was Marshall's battle against segregation, instead of working within its laws. o He used many social science studies, demonstrating inequalities and that African American children felt inferior just by going to Black schools. o This struck "Separate but Equal" off the books and began to derail legal segregation.

Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike

- People are getting frustrated with the Great Society. With all the money being spent, not a lot of improvement is being made on poverty, racism, etc. - Johnson could not run on the Vietnam War, as people did not think he was winning it and he could not run on the Great Society because people were not happy with it. With no domestic or foreign successes to stand on he made a famous speech that he would not run for or accept the nomination for president. - Memphis Sanitation Workers went on strike for the regular things (pay, hours, etc.) but also just for respect. They were working full time, but were living below the poverty line. Most were African American. - An example of the economic struggle as mentioned by Martin Luther King in the Civil Rights Movement. - MLK led a march, but struggled to keep it non-violent. He was rushed away in a car, but made a plea for non-violence. But people were fed up with non-violence and felt that it was not working. - April 3, 1968 - MLK addresses the sanitation workers. He spoke to the workers about the efforts of the government to keep them from marching and that they should keep striving for livable wages and dignity. "Mountaintop Speech." This was his last speech as the next day he was assassinated. - Assassination left an uncertain future for the civil rights movement. People questioned what good was non-violence. The assassination was the final break for non-violence for many. - The strikers won a victory on April 12th, and were given a raise and their demands were met.

Hooverville

- President Hoover and Congress responded to the downturn by drawing on two powerful American traditions. o The first was the belief that economic outcomes were the product of individual character. People's fate was in their own hands, and success went to those who deserved it. o The second tradition held that through voluntary action, the business community could right itself and recover from economic downturns without relying on government assistance. - Following these principles, Hoover asked Americans to tighten their belts and work hard. After the stock market crash, he cut federal taxes in an attempt to boost private spending and corporate investment. - Hoover's adherence to the gold standard was a major reason for the length and severity of the Depression in the US. Faced with economic catastrophe, both Britain and Germany abandoned the gold standard in 1931; when they did so, their economies recovered modestly. But the Hoover administration feared that such a move would weaken the value of the dollar. o In reality, an inflexible money supply discouraged investment and therefore prevented growth. - Along with their adherence to the gold standard, the Hoover administration and many congressional Republicans believed in another piece of economic orthodoxy that had protected American manufacturing in good economic times, but that proved damaging during the downturn: high tariffs (taxes on imported goods designed to encourage American manufacturing). o In 1930, Republicans enacted the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. Despite receiving a letter from more than a thousand economists urging him to veto it, Hoover approved the legislation. o This triggered retaliatory tariffs in other countries, which further hindered global trade and led to greater economic contraction throughout the industrialized world. - Hoover's reluctance to break with the philosophy of limited government and his insistence that recovery was always just around the corner contributed to his unpopularity. By 1932, Americans perceived Hoover as insensitive to the depth of the country's economic suffering. o This demonstrated a paradigm shift from the depressions of the 1870s and 1890s, when no one except the most radical figures called for direct federal aid to the unemployed. - As the depression deepened, the American vocabulary now included the terms Hoovervilles (shantytowns where people lived in packing crates) and Hoover blankets (newspapers).

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

- President Hoover recognized that individual initiative, voluntarism and high tariffs might not be enough, given the depth of the crisis, and so he proposed government action as well. He called on state and local governments to provide jobs by investing in public projects. - In 1931, he secured an unprecedented increase of $700 million in federal spending for public works. - Hoover's most innovative program was the RFC, which provided federal loans to railroads, banks and other businesses. - But the RFC lent money too cautiously, and by the end of 1932, after a year in operation, it had loaned out only 20% of its $1.5 billion in funds. - Like most federal initiatives under Hoover, the RFC was not nearly aggressive enough given the severity of the depression. With federal officials fearing budget deficits and reluctant to interfere with the private market, caution was the order of the day.

Radio Act of 1927

- Prior to 1927, radio was regulated by the United States Department of Commerce. Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover played a strong role in shaping radio. His powers were limited by federal court decisions, however; in particular, he was not allowed to deny broadcasting licenses to anyone who wanted one. - The result was that many people perceived the airwaves to suffer from "chaos," with too many stations trying to be heard on too few frequencies. Others believed the government simply wanted to control content. (Initially only two frequencies were available for broadcasting with one of these being reserved for "Crop reports and weather forecasts.") - After several failed attempts to rectify this situation, Congress finally passed the Radio Act of 1927, which transferred most of the responsibility for radio to a newly created Federal Radio Commission. - The five-person FRC was given the power to grant and deny licenses, and to assign frequencies and power levels for each licensee. - The Commission was not given any official power of censorship, although programming could not include "obscene, indecent, or profane language." In theory, anything else could be aired. In practice, the Commission could take into consideration programming when renewing licenses, and their ability to take away a broadcaster's license enabled them to control content to some degree.

Office of War Information

- Purpose was to make sure that everyone knew what the war was about and that the whole country was on the same page. - The army censored outgoing mail, but they also wanted people at home to remain quiet about anything they knew. - Posters also promoted conservation and rationing efforts. - Would remind people that they were part of the effort and would remind them about why they were fighting - freedom vs. fascism. They had to protect democracy both at home and abroad. - Carefully monitored film production - encouraged movies that promoted the war. For example, they dehumanized the Japanese but made the Russians seem similar to Americans.

Robert F. Kennedy

- Ran as a Democrat on an anti-war campaign. A lot of McCarthy's followers flocked to Kennedy and McCarthy's campaign flickered out. - Credited with preventing a riot in Indianapolis after the MLK assassination because he spoke so eloquently. - By June, the only other candidate in the race was Humphrey who was pro-war as Kennedy won over state after state. - He claimed that he would continue where Kennedy left off. - Won many primaries, but was assassinated by a Palestinian nationalist. - For many liberals, Kennedy was the last hope for the grand social ideas that were prevalent at the beginning of the decade. Another blow that resulted in loss of faith in government. - Hubert Humphrey was the defacto candidate who would win the nomination. - The second major figure (first was MLK) assassinated who had been promoting economic equality.

Forgotten Man

- Roosevelt's campaign theme - aimed to demonstrate that he represented the average man. - Claimed that the government should go above and beyond for the average person - something Hoover had failed to do. - This was slightly hypocritical as Roosevelt came from a wealthy family and couldn't exactly be considered a "working man." - He promised to give relief to the poor and unemployed. - Coined the phrase, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself" in reference to the consumer insecurity that was hurting the country. People were afraid of another economic collapse, so they were not spending what money they had. - Roosevelt hosted "fire side chats" on the radio to explain his complicated policies in another attempt to reach out to the average person.

Voting Rights Act

- Several civil rights organizations mobilized to call on the governor and the nation to provide legal protection for the right to vote. - Drew the nation's attention. - Outlawed literacy tests and poll taxes - If the number of registered voters is below 50% then federal court marshals would be brought in to prevent voter disenfrichement.

Freedom Summer

- Several organizations created Freedom Summer - many students from the North (white) participated. - They consciously recruited white students to help out with voter registration drives in Mississippi. o Southern whites may hesitate to harm fellow whites. o White people were better off at that time - better connections. o This may influence their well-off parents to donate to the cause. o Media attention. - The first three SNCC organizers to arrive in Mississippi were arrested, mysteriously disappeared from their jail cells and were later found murdered. - 37 black churches were burned as well as a few dozen houses and businesses. - Started freedom schools to teach African Americans to read and write, how to vote, etc.

Executive Order 9066

- Signed by Franklin Roosevelt that played on an American fear of the Japanese. - The Japanese launched a surprise attack at Pearl Harbor in 1941. The Americans launched a lot of sneak attacks during the war, but they felt that Pearl Harbor was especially devious. All Japanese were then considered to be sneaky and devious people. - Hatred of the Japanese was racial not nationalistic; Americans didn't just hate people that lived in Japan, but also Japanese-Americans. - Executive order was to round up Japanese-American citizens and put them in concentration camps. This was expressed as a national security measure. - The US army would recruit many soldiers from those camps and sent to Europe instead of the Pacific Theatre.

Rosie the Riveter

- Started by the Office of War Information. - Campaign to get women into the factories. Women entered the workforce in unprecedented numbers. Before the war, it was widely believed that married women should not have a job if their husband did. Only single women or widows worked. - The war had to change national attitudes toward women in the workforce. For example, it was assumed that working married women were promiscuous. - Focused on stating that married and middle-aged women should join the work force. These jobs were often traditionally men's jobs so to smooth these transitions, they made the jobs comparable to house work. - A lot of work in the factories had been automated at this point; so physical strength was no longer a strict requirement. - Would also stress that this was a temporary sacrifice. After the war, women were expected to return to the home and give up their job to a soldier. However, women developed a new sense of what they could accomplish and also enjoyed much higher wages than they could have made before the war.

Fair Employment Practices Commission

- Stated that defense industries could not discriminate against employees based on race. - Before this, racist hiring practices were not hidden: application signs would state "Whites Only" and African Americans would be turned away because their race was not being hired. - If companies violated this policy, their defense contract could be taken away. - Tens of thousands of African Americans were then hired into the defense industries.

Breadlines

- The Great Depression left the nation devastated. Families were financially unable to scrape up money for their next meal. Breadlines and soup kitchens were established as charitable organizations giving free bread and soup to the impoverished. - A breadline refers to the line of people waiting outside a charity. These charities gave out free food such as bread and soup. There were so many homeless people that these lines stretched across blocks, filled with desperate civilians struggling to get by.

Detroit Riot

- The new influx of African Americans into the workforce and into new residential areas raised racial tensions. - A race riot in 1943 Detroit erupted, sparked by a fight that broke out among youths at an amusement park. - Caused by neighborhood integration and competition over jobs. - Two thirds of the people arrested were people who had never been arrested before. This meant the riot involved ordinary people, not the hoodlums or juvenile delinquents that the government accused.

Federal Deposit Insurance Company (FIDC)

- The weak banking system hobbled the entire economy, curtailing consumer spending and business investment. Widespread bank failures had reduced the savings of nearly nine million families and panicked account holders raced to withdraw their funds. - On March 5, 1933, the day after his inauguration, FDR declared a national bank holiday - closing all the banks - and called Congress into a special session. Four days later, Congress passed the Emergency Banking Act, which permitted banks to open if a Treasury Department inspection showed that they had sufficient cash reserves. - In his first Sunday night fireside chat, the president reassured citizens that their money was safe. When the banks reopened, calm prevailed and deposits exceeded withdrawals, restoring stability to the nation's basic financial institutions. - Protected deposits so that people would once again be encouraged to save their money in banks. - Promised that if the banks failed, the government would write out a deposit check ($2500). - Included the ability to withdraw money from the bank. - Prohibited banks from making risky, unsecured investments with the deposits of ordinary people. - Another example of an attempt to fix the supply side of the Depression - fix bank and restore consumer confidence. - Roosevelt also removed the US Treasury from the gold standard, which allowed the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.

Vietnamization

- Turning the war over to the Vietnamese. Created by the Nixon administration. - Nixon ran a campaign in 1968 on "Peace with Honor." - In 1972, Nixon said that they were bringing the war to a close. o They would focus all of their energies on training the South Vietnamese to fight the war. Called the Army of the Republic of Viet Nam. - Gave them American weapons - M16 rifles, machine guns, mortar, and grenades. - Trained them to be identical to American Rifle Companies and provided transportation to the battlefield. - American officers and members of the Special Forces would lead them into battle. - Issues: o Prolonged American involvement in Vietnam. o Suggested no plans of reconstruction in the country after having destroyed it. o South Vietnamese who joined the insurgency would have American weapons. o This was a strategy that had already failed the American army once. o Continued to alienate people, especially after the rule of Diem. - Demonstrated again misunderstanding of the Vietnamese commitment to independence.

National War Labor Board (Maintenance of Membership)

- Unions were still fighting against a lot of companies for bargaining rights. - One of the main concerns of the federal government was that they would not be able to fight a war if workers were striking. - The Board's goal was ensure 100% output during the war. Companies were urged to sign contracts with the unions and unions would pledge not to strike. - The Maintenance of Membership clause was very attractive to unions: once a contract was signed, every new employee of a company would join the union within 60 days. This increased the members of unions from 10-15 million during WWII. - Dues check off - when the company signs the collective bargaining agreement, union dues would be deducted from the employee's pay cheque. o This stabilized unions. Previous to this clause, unions would collapse when the country was faced with an economic crisis, as no one wanted to pay union dues. - Wages were set across the country, which boosted the Southern economy.

Bonus Marchers

- Veterans staged the most publicized - and most tragic - protest against layoffs and wage cuts. - In the summer of 1932, the Bonus Army, a determined group of 15,000 unemployed WWI veterans hitchhiked to Washington to demand immediate payment of pension awards that were due to be paid in 1945. o One veteran stated: "We were heroes in 1917, but we're bums now." - While their leaders unsuccessfully lobbied Congress, the Bonus Army set up camps near the Capitol building. - Hoover called out regular army troops under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, who forcefully evicted the marchers and burned their main encampment to the ground. - When newsreel footage showing the US Army attacking and injuring veterans reached movie theatres across the nation, Hoover's popularity plunged.

Walter Reuther

- Walter Reuther was the president of the UAW, and was involved in the Battle of the Overpass. - Tried organizing Ford (last one). - The Battle of the Overpass made national news as it came out that Ford had beat up workers on the eve of WWII who had a legal right to protest there. - The American people were less tolerant towards brutality against protestors than they had been in the days of the Pinkertons for example. - African Americans stayed inside the company and did not strike initially because they were very loyal to the Ford Company; they were paid the same $5 as the white workers. In addition, their white coworkers had been racist towards them and now would be in charge of the United Autoworkers Union. However, they did eventually walk out one day, which tipped the scale in favor of the union, and the company was forced to back down. They could see that the union was going to win and wanted a seat at the bargaining table.

Watts Riot

-Summer of 1965 - Los Angeles, August 11 - The police pulled over a young man and his brother for driving erratically and beat them up with batons. More police arrived on the scene as well the boys' mother who was also abused. All three were arrested. - A crowd gathered and a riot began. A rumor began that one of the boys had been killed. A riot began in which people destroyed property and looted. Lasted six days - approximately 30 killed and 1000 wounded. - Underlying reasons: unemployment, housing problems and education problems.